Introduction from the First Minister

Rt Hon Nicola Sturgeon
MSP First Minister of Scotland

Last year’s Programme for Government set out bold and
ambitious plans to tackle some of the big challenges of our time
– getting our economy fit for the future, preparing for
demographic change and tackling inequality. It spoke to the sort of
Scotland we want to see – one that is innovative, welcoming,
caring and productive. Our aim is a Scotland where every person and
community is able to achieve their full potential.

It is not possible to ignore the uncertainty caused by Brexit
– uncertainty that is being made worse by the blundering of
the
UK Government. But,
equally, we must not let it define us, curtail our ambitions or
halt Scotland’s progress.

And the progress we’ve made so far is significant.

Over the past decade we have delivered radical changes in our
country – free prescriptions, over a quarter of a million
modern apprenticeships, equal marriage, world-leading action on
climate change and the modernisation of our infrastructure. And
before we know it, our more recent innovations like Baby Boxes for
newborns, fairer systems of taxation and social security, and
minimum unit pricing for alcohol will be taken as the norm.

We should be proud of what we, as a country, have achieved in
making Scotland a better place – a country where businesses
are profitable and people are treated fairly; a country where we
nurture, help and protect those who need it most, and where our
public institutions, whether our
NHS, schools,
social security system or enterprise and skills agencies, belong
to, and listen to, the people they serve.

The next wave of progress has already started.

We are now delivering a transformational expansion of early
learning and childcare, that will save families thousands of pounds
and ensure that every child has the best start in life. We are
investing in an economy that delivers for everyone, with spending
on economic development in Scotland higher than the
UK as a whole.

The modernisation of our infrastructure too is progressing
– we have exceeded our target of 95% fibre broadband coverage
across Scotland and are now taking forward our commitment to 100%
superfast connectivity.

Strong public services are an essential part of building a
strong economy and we continue to invest for the future.

We have recently awarded 147,000
NHS staff a
minimum pay rise of 9% over the next three years and we are
investing record amounts in our
NHS to help it
adapt to the challenges of a changing society. Our communities are
benefiting from significant investment in new and affordable homes
and recorded crime at its lowest level since 1974.

We have put in place new legislation setting international
standards for tackling domestic abuse and will now take forward
plans to better support victims and witnesses of crime. This past
winter we were able to keep more people from sleeping rough –
and now our work to fundamentally change how we tackle and prevent
homelessness will intensify.

All of our work is now supported by a fairer tax system –
which asks those who can most afford it to pay a little more to
protect our public services, while ensuring slightly lower bills
for the majority.

So much has been achieved but there is still much more we want
to do.

This Programme for Government continues the major reforms that
are under way in our health, education and justice systems. And it
builds on the progress we have made in tackling inequalities.

A strong, sustainable and inclusive economy is central to
that.

In this Programme for Government I am committing to the most
ambitious long-term level of infrastructure spend that Scotland has
ever seen – that is investment in schools, hospitals and
transport, and in digital connectivity and clean energy.

In the coming year we will introduce legislation to underpin the
Scottish National Investment Bank and take forward a package of
measures to increase the export of Scotland’s innovations and
products to the rest of the world.

We will also work with industry and trade unions to ensure that
our people have the skills they need to benefit from the
technological change that is transforming our world and
workplaces.

To be a more successful country we need to close the gap between
the health of our wealthiest communities and that of our poorest,
and we need to see an overall improvement in our population
health.

We know that ensuring good health, both physical and mental, is
not just the job of the
NHS –
indeed, good health is directly linked to our economic success as a
nation. However, a modern, fit-for-purpose
NHS, focused on
prevention and speedy treatment where necessary, is essential. Our
health service, like that of other nations, is facing the
challenges of changing demographics and rising demand. We are
determined to support it to meet those challenges.

We will continue to invest record sums and later this month we
will publish a plan to substantially and sustainably improve
waiting times.

Mental health is just as important as physical health and we
recognise that, right now, support for our children and young
people in particular is not good enough. This Programme for
Government commits to changing that. We plan a significant
investment in the range of support available to our young people,
which will see issues tackled earlier and where possible in the
community, while ensuring speedier access to specialist care for
those who need it.

The defining mission of my government remains our commitment to
education – for every child to have the best start in life
and to fulfil their potential. I want young people to continue to
benefit from the free, quality education that I was privileged to
have. We will build on the work that is under way to close the
attainment gap and, with our colleagues in local government, we
will pick up the pace of the reforms needed to put power in the
hands of headteachers, schools and communities. Our new packages of
careers advice and student support will also help us to continue to
make progress on equal access to university by 2030.

Our new, more compassionate social security system will make its
first payments this month through the Carer’s Allowance
Supplement and we will start making payments from our Best Start
Grant by the end of the year – more than six months ahead of
schedule. This will put more money into the pockets of families on
lower incomes – by providing £600 on the birth of a
first child and £300 on the birth of any further children,
more than the current
UK Government
arrangements.

And we will make progress on reducing child poverty, with
children in school this year being among the first entitled to a
national minimum school clothing grant of £100. We will also
extend access to free sanitary products to more women and girls and
deliver on radical recommendations to end homelessness.

There is still work to be done to tackle the prejudices and
attitudes that fuel intolerance and we will consult on new hate
crime laws that are fit for 21st-century Scotland. We will also
take forward a package of measures to better support the victims of
crime, and put victims and witnesses at the heart of our reforms to
our justice system.

We are learning more and more about the impact of adverse
childhood experiences on our life chances and we have a moral
imperative to do more, not only to prevent them from happening in
the first place, but to limit the damage they do to people,
families and communities in the longer term. Our expansion of the
Family Nurse Partnership and increased recruitment of school nurses
and counsellors will help to deliver practical support in
communities to those that need it most.

We will continue to take world-leading action on climate change
and reduce the burden of plastics in our seas – banning the
manufacture and sale of plastic-stemmed cotton buds. While we
protect our natural environment and its biodiversity for future
generations we will continue to make the most of the economic
opportunities of our natural infrastructure through tourism,
innovation in the circular economy and clean energy. Moving beyond
the design of our deposit return system we will consult on what
additional measures should be considered to improve the use and
reuse of other materials.

And as we make progress we will continue to look outwards.

We will continue to be innovative, pioneering, inclusive and
creative and to give the record number of people coming to visit us
the warmest of welcomes.

Everyone who wants to be part of Scotland’s progress must
feel welcome to live, work and study here. All of our population
growth in the next 25 years is predicated to come from migration.
So we want those healthcare professionals, teachers, students and
entrepreneurs – indeed people from any walk of life who will
add to the richness of our country – to do us the honour of
making Scotland their home and help us create a more successful
country.

Of course we cannot ignore the fact that Brexit puts all of our
progress at risk and we will continue to call upon the
UK Government to divert
us from the damaging course of a hard and unnecessary Brexit.

We recognise, however, our responsibility to Scotland to prepare
for all exit possibilities in order to protect the Scottish economy
in what are and will continue to be very uncertain times. So we
must be prepared to act quickly and be flexible in our response,
anchored by our values and our determination to do right by all of
Scotland.

As we look to the future, however, one thing is certain: our
commitment – my commitment – to making sure that all of
Scotland flourishes, and that we remain outward looking and
confident, will be undiminished.

This Programme for Government sets out what I want us to achieve
in both the short and long term. But the vision it underpins will
not be delivered by government alone – it is for all of us.
It is Scotland’s plan for the future.

This Programme for Government sets out an ambitious plan that
will deliver for people, communities and businesses now and make
the investments that will benefit future generations. The plans we
are setting out in this Programme for Government include:

increasing investment in Scotland’s infrastructure so
it is £1.5 billion per year higher by 2025-26 than in
2019-20. This increased investment will help us support faster
broadband, improved transport and more low-carbon energy

delivering the first Best Start Grant payments before
Christmas – 6 months earlier than planned – helping
parents on low incomes with £600 on the birth of their
first child and £300 on the birth of later children, to buy
the pram or other big essentials that new families need

recruiting 430 new school, college and university counsellors
as part of a new package to help support wellbeing and prevent
mental ill-health

implementing new powers for headteachers, making them the key
decision makers in the life of their school

making payment of the living wage, transparency on
gender-equal pay and exclusion of zero-hours contracts criteria
for the award of job-related public sector grants like Regional
Selective Assistance

supporting 750 new, extended or refurbished nurseries as part
of our commitment to double the provision of early learning and
childcare

developing ‘A Trading Nation’ – an enhanced
export plan, backed by £20 million of investment, to help
boost the value of our overseas exports and provide additional
help to those considering overseas trade

rolling out the electrification of Scotland’s roads
with 1500 new charge points and £20 million to help people
and businesses switch to electric vehicles

reducing our carbon footprint with 500 new ultra low emission
vehicles in the public sector and over 100 new green buses

enshrining children’s rights by incorporating the
principles of the
UN Convention on the
Rights of the Child into law